Unravelling the Mystery of "Electric Fog"

[Ivan Seeking]

There are a number of similar reports that I've seen about an alleged phenomenon that has been called an "electric fog". One episode is described by a pilot, and another by a tug boat captain, both in the so called Bermuda Triangle. I will dig those up later.

I don't mean to say that even if accurate, all reports necessarily describe the same phenomenon, but there is definitely a common thread to the reports in that a "cloud" or "fog" is said to have electric and/or magnetic effects on the environment in some fashion, while void of lightning.

Here is an interesting report from the British steamer, the Mohican, which is allegedly taken from the original news report, from 1904. The same report can be found elsewhere.

... For that length of time the vessel was enshrouded in a strange metallic vapor, which glowed like phosphorus. The entire vessel looked as if it were afire and the sailors flitted about the deck like glowing phantoms. The cloud had a strange magnetic effect on the vessel, for the needle of the compass revolved with the speed of an electric motor and the sailors were unable to raise pieces of steel from the magnetized decks. Captain Urquhart described the thrilling experience and his story is vouched for by every man of the crew.

"It was shortly after the sun had gone,” he said, "and we were in latitude 37 degrees 16 minutes and longitude 72 degrees 48 minutes. The sea was almost as level as a parlor carpet and scarcely a breeze ruffled the water. It was slowly growing dark when the lookout saw a strange gray cloud in the southeast. At first it appeared as a speck on the horizon, but it rapidly came nearer and was soon as large as [a] balloon.” [continued]

http://www.waterufo.net/item.php?id=30

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Here is one account that I mentioned. There is another account similar to the other one mentioned above, right above this one at the link.

In 1966, a tugboat captain, Don Henry was on his way from Puerto Rico to Fort Lauderdale on a clear afternoon. Suddenly the compasses on his tug began to spin wildly as a strange darkness descended on them and the horizon couldn’t be seen. Water was coming in all directions, and their electrical power failed completely. A dense fog covered their tug. Luckily, their engine kept going and they moved out of the fog. Looking back, the fog was densely concentrated in a solid block, "a bank." Inside this area, the sea was boiling. Outside this area, the sea was calm.[continued]

http://books.google.com/books?id=Mf7ujOGDzZ8C&pg=PA63&lpg=PA63&dq=%22don+henry%22+tug&source=web&ots=eB0q2L-IEf&sig=t1sfGNXT-rVNiY7pq-v4-kloAdY#PPA63,M1

The bit about the engine still running without electrical power would make sense if it was a diesel engine, which one would expect.

 

[zoobyshoe]

The boiling sea in the latter report suggests the fog was gas coming up from the sea bottom and that some event down there was responsible for the magnetic effects.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Yes, I should have said that along with a strange fog, electrical failures were reported.

 

[wolram]

The only thing i have any knowledge of that can make the sea boil is a release of
frozen co2, clathrate, can CO2 hold an electric/magnetic field.

 

[zoobyshoe]

The only thing i have any knowledge of that can make the sea boil is a release of
frozen co2, clathrate, can CO2 hold an electric/magnetic field.

My suspicion, in the case of the second report, was that a vulcanic/seismic event on the sea bottom was both releasing gas and causing a large magnetic disturbance. I doubt the "fog", itself, was responsible for the electromagnetic effects.

In the first report the fog, itself, seemed to be glowing. Of course that brings the phenomenon of St. Elmo's Fire to mind, but St. Elmo's Fire is associated with common electrical storms and I think the charge is assumed to come from the voltage difference between clouds and the ship since the "Fire" is most concentrated on pointy things; the ends of spars, etc, in a normal electrostatic fashion. A gas that glows like phosphorous enveloping the whole ship is probably not straightforward St. Elmo's Fire.

 

[wolram]

The report says some thing about the compass rotating, would that not rule out a static electrical charge?

 

[zoobyshoe]

The report says some thing about the compass rotating, would that not rule out a static electrical charge?

As Maxwell observed, a changing electric field always gives rise to a magnetic field. So, while in the process of charging or discharging any "static" electric field is actually radiating electro-magnetic energy. A capacitor radiates a magnetic wave while charging or discharging, for example. The "glow" of St. Elmo's Fire represents a discharge of static electricity from the ship into the atmosphere, so, it wouldn't surprise me to find the ship's compass affected in cases where a ship seems to be experiencing an unusual amount of static electric buildup as when St. Elmo's Fire is present.

 

[minorwork]

The Sun Kings: The Unexpected Tragedy of Richard Carrington and the Tale of How Modern Astronomy Began
Stuart Clark

First chapter relates the 1859 Coronal Mass Ejection events when the telegraph was the limits of our invovment with electricity. December 5 2003 we missed being hit by a similar solar storm. Ships at sea relate accounts of St. Elmo's fire. https://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0691126607/ref=sib_dp_pt/002-7832919-1007269#reader-link This let's you read a good bit about the 1859 event.